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Text-messaging reminders can increase vaccination rates, but overall rates still low
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Text-messaging reminders to parents may provide a cost-effective way to increase immunization rates, but more work is needed to boost overall influenza vaccination rates, according to recent study results.
Melissa S. Stockwell, MD, MPH, of the department of pediatrics at the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University in New York, and colleagues examined 7,574 children aged 6 months to 18 years who received care at community-based clinics during the 2010-2011 influenza season but had not received influenza vaccine. The investigators aimed to determine whether text messaging could help increase immunization rates.
The researchers divided children into a regular care group (n=3,784) and an intervention group (n=3,790), which received up to five weekly text messages that provided educational information and instructions on how to receive influenza vaccine at clinics. Texts were sent either in English or Spanish depending on the parents’ preferred language. Most of the children were from minority families; 88% had public insurance; and 58% of children were from Spanish-speaking families.
Although the overall influenza vaccination rate remained low, children whose parents received text messages along with usual care, telephone reminders and access to informational flyers were more likely to have their children vaccinated (43.6%) compared with those who did not receive text messages (39.9%).
“Text messaging to increase vaccination coverage has numerous strengths. It can reach large populations, and for vaccines like influenza recommended for the majority of the population, even small increases in vaccination rates can lead to large numbers of protected individuals. It may also be cost-effective,” Stockwell and colleagues wrote. “Once the system is set up, the only variable cost is the sending of the text messages, which, even using commercial platforms, usually costs pennies per message.”
Disclosure: Dr. Stockwell reports no relevant financial disclosures.
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